Jim Morrison Posted June 20, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 I didn't get that job...........but some of the best jobs are the one's you don't do. I will put myself out there a little further and accuse you -for the first time I'm aware of- of being understated. The very best jobs are the troublesome ones you pass on. Unquestionably. I'd happily trade 20 lucrative inspections for 1 troublesome one. Thing is: How do you ID them on the front end? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Morrison Posted June 20, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 Will I be sorry I took this one on? Will it be worthwhile? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Jones Posted June 20, 2011 Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 I say possibly and maybe:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brandon Whitmore Posted June 20, 2011 Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 Will I be sorry I took this one on? Will it be worthwhile? Judging by her reply, I say you'll be fine. Worthwhile? Only if 800 bucks is worthwhile. I'd have offered a very slight discount if I were slow and didn't expect to be able to book something else. At least I think so, it depends on my mood at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hausdok Posted June 20, 2011 Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 Mike O will appreciate this one. I had a potential client from his neck of the woods call and ask for a quote which I gave, and he said the last inspector he talked with was almost $100 cheaper. Mike, that would have put them at $375 for 2800 Sq ft of house. I don't know about appreciating it; it did cause me to chuckle knowingly. My lowest fee for a full inspection, regardless of type of structure or anything else, from 1sq ft up to 1500 sq. ft.(I don't care if it's the size of a doghouse) is $395. I probably would have asked him which major component of the home - roof, foundation, electrical system, heating system, plumbing system - he did not want to have inspected and told him that he'd have to accept a 1 page handwritten checklist type report in order for me to take off $100, and the fee for a home that size would have still be substantially north of $375. ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!! Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chad Fabry Posted June 20, 2011 Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 I start @ $425. I'm up from $350 last year. I have yet to lose an inspection to price this year. Here's the thing though, I'm no longer inspecting pieces of crap. I sell myself using any tactic that keeps the dialog going including rhetoric concerning the realtor/ inspector relationship. Often though, my clients come pre-qualified and about half don't ask "how much" until we get to the inspection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Katen Posted June 20, 2011 Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 Jimmy, Here's part of a recent email response I sent to a client who was doing the same thing to me as that potential client was doing to you: You called me because you already knew the quality of the work that I do. You told me that you learned about me on your company's intranet message board; where dozens of your co-workers had strongly recommended me to others in your firm. The fee I've quoted you is based on the same fee structure I used when I did those inspections; nonetheless, you want me to reduce my fee by comparing me to other inspectors whose level of expertise and competence you cannot verify beyond what the inspector tells you or what you've read on the inspector's website. Frankly, I find that to be a little insulting. If dozens of your co-workers had been successful in court proceedings because they'd all hired a certain very experienced lawyer to represent them; and then you wanted to hire that same lawyer to represent you, would you then try to get that lawyer to reduce his or her fee by comparing what that lawyer charges to the fees charged by a lawyer that's six months out of law school? Professionals charge professional fees; that's the way it is. Why, when you are about to make the most expensive purchase of your lifetime, would you even consider trusting the investigation of that home to the lowest bidder? More than 80% of new home inspection companies fail within two years; that's a fact. After 15 years, my company is still around because I know what I am doing and because I know how to charge fairly for my services. So, if the lower fee charged by an inspector whose competence you can't be sure of is more important to you than hiring the most qualified, competent and experienced inspector you can find, than by all means you should hire the $350 inspector. Otherwise, at the present time I can accommodate you on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday of this week at 1pm only. If none of those dates works for you, I'll be happy to provide you the names and phone numbers of other experienced and competent inspectors whom I trust to do a good job for you and maybe one of them will be able to accommodate your schedule. She booked the inspection within an hour for the Tuesday afternoon slot. I'm surprised. I would have told you to go screw yourself. Honestly, that's one of the worst responses I can imagine. It's condescending, rude, and belligerent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Katen Posted June 20, 2011 Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 . . . No one who charges $350 can subsist on one inspection per day. . . . One other thought. You might want to drop that line about subsisting on $350/day. You could easily be talking with someone who earns $150 per day and who thinks that $350/day would be a marvelous subsistence. Sure, they wouldn't be considering overhead or the cost of doing business . But they wouldn't have to. They'd already have gotten the impression that you have a low regard for people who earn *only* $350/day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allseason Posted June 20, 2011 Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 I had a client to whom I quoted a price after he had basically interviewed me for about 10 or 15 minutes. After telling him the price he asked if there was any room to move on the price, I told him "Yes, I can charge you more if you want". His reply, "Good answer". I got the job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted June 20, 2011 Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 I will put myself out there a little further and accuse you -for the first time I'm aware of- of being understated. The very best jobs are the troublesome ones you pass on. Unquestionably. I'd happily trade 20 lucrative inspections for 1 troublesome one. Thing is: How do you ID them on the front end? Top ways to tell the person on the other end of the line is a pain in the ass: The pain in the ass will: 1) ask price before any other question 2) start with the "10 questions to ask your home inspector" they saw in the real estate section of the local paper 3) immediately ask if you have E&O (I will often tell folks that I do, but the folks that come out of the chute asking about it are the danger zone) 4) if you try to maneuver the conversation toward stuff that actually matters, they will get mildly huffy and redirect it back to what they think is important / HIGH ALERT ON THIS ONE 5) they become upset if you can't be there on Sunday @ 4:30pm, or rather, if they become upset about anything related to scheduling 6) Expand #5 to "if they become upset about anything during your conversation". 7) if they ask questions like "what is your philosophical approach to home inspection?". I would talk about that with the brethren, but not with a civilian on the first date. (I might when the job is all done.) Angie's List, which used to be wonderful, is morphing into hard nosed consumer activist types. Gotta be careful with Angie's List referrals. 9) Anyone that asks "do you know any contractors that are really good but reasonably priced?" If I could think of another, we'd have a decent Top 10 list.......... Anyone got anything? Oftentimes I'll take these jobs on and everything turns out just fine, but these are the things I've found are often the prelude to pain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Jones Posted June 20, 2011 Report Share Posted June 20, 2011 #1 is the most common question. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Katen Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 Top ways to tell the person on the other end of the line is a pain in the ass:. . . It's not the questions, per se. It's something about the way that they're asked. I've gotten to the point where I can spot the troublemakers by the time three or four words are out of their mouths. I'll bet you can too. It's more about attitude than actual questions. A perfectly nice customer might just be reading questions given to him by a troublemaker uncle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bain Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 So if #1 is the most common first question, how does everyone respond? I typically say, "My fees are outrageous, but I'm worth every penny." Nine out of ten people laugh, which helps to set the tone. That one out of ten who doesn't laugh, I didn't have much of a shot with in the first place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 It's not the questions, per se. It's something about the way that they're asked. I've gotten to the point where I can spot the troublemakers by the time three or four words are out of their mouths. I'll bet you can too. It's more about attitude than actual questions. A perfectly nice customer might just be reading questions given to him by a troublemaker uncle. True words. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 So if #1 is the most common first question, how does everyone respond? I typically say, "My fees are outrageous, but I'm worth every penny." Nine out of ten people laugh, which helps to set the tone. That one out of ten who doesn't laugh, I didn't have much of a shot with in the first place. Politely. Like you, work a little humor in edgewise if possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hausdok Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 Jimmy, Here's part of a recent email response I sent to a client who was doing the same thing to me as that potential client was doing to you: You called me because you already knew the quality of the work that I do. You told me that you learned about me on your company's intranet message board; where dozens of your co-workers had strongly recommended me to others in your firm. The fee I've quoted you is based on the same fee structure I used when I did those inspections; nonetheless, you want me to reduce my fee by comparing me to other inspectors whose level of expertise and competence you cannot verify beyond what the inspector tells you or what you've read on the inspector's website. Frankly, I find that to be a little insulting. If dozens of your co-workers had been successful in court proceedings because they'd all hired a certain very experienced lawyer to represent them; and then you wanted to hire that same lawyer to represent you, would you then try to get that lawyer to reduce his or her fee by comparing what that lawyer charges to the fees charged by a lawyer that's six months out of law school? Professionals charge professional fees; that's the way it is. Why, when you are about to make the most expensive purchase of your lifetime, would you even consider trusting the investigation of that home to the lowest bidder? More than 80% of new home inspection companies fail within two years; that's a fact. After 15 years, my company is still around because I know what I am doing and because I know how to charge fairly for my services. So, if the lower fee charged by an inspector whose competence you can't be sure of is more important to you than hiring the most qualified, competent and experienced inspector you can find, than by all means you should hire the $350 inspector. Otherwise, at the present time I can accommodate you on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday of this week at 1pm only. If none of those dates works for you, I'll be happy to provide you the names and phone numbers of other experienced and competent inspectors whom I trust to do a good job for you and maybe one of them will be able to accommodate your schedule. She booked the inspection within an hour for the Tuesday afternoon slot. I'm surprised. I would have told you to go screw yourself. Honestly, that's one of the worst responses I can imagine. It's condescending, rude, and belligerent. Yep, that's me in a nutshell. OT - OF!!! M. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtblum Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 Because these days, Atlantic salmon are farmed and more often than not fattened on corn (IOW: McSalmon). Bleech! Further bulletins as events warrant. Not if they're wrapped in bacon. Even if the fish sucks, it's still a win win. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Raymond Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 If you deal with people long enough you develop radar for assholes. It's just that simple. I apply a PITA percentage for every little tingle of the spidey senses. Most of the time I price myself out of the job, and on the rare occasions I don't there is some (not enough, but some) compensation for the extraordinary headaches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Hockstein Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 I should probably cut the call short when the shopper starts to speak about all of the the other prices that everyone else has told them (referring to the 20 other home inspectors that they have called so far that day). The vast majority of my work is from direct referrrals and not from price shoppers. It is rare that I book the inspection even though I attempt to educate them about why they should be asking about the qualifications of the inspector before the price. It seems that after I quote the price they just tune out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erby Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 Are you asking about price because that's most important to you, or are you just not sure what other questions to ask? Price = high quote & goodbye. Not sure = a discussion about qualifications and inspections. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 I did an inspection for a Dime in the late 1990's. We have been in a depression for 8-9yrs here in Michigan so there are precious few inspectors that earn a living. All our fees are very low and have not advanced from 2000. I'm too old to move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Baird Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 Remember Atticus Finch did some legal work for Mr. Tom Euell in exchange for a sack of hickory nuts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Morrison Posted June 21, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 Remember Atticus Finch did some legal work for Mr. Tom Euell in exchange for a sack of hickory nuts. True dat, but I believe that in the English Department, they refer to that as: 'Fiction' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurt Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 Are you asking about price because that's most important to you, or are you just not sure what other questions to ask? Price = high quote & goodbye. Not sure = a discussion about qualifications and inspections. That's good. Simple, direct, honest, fast. I'm going to use it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Baird Posted June 21, 2011 Report Share Posted June 21, 2011 Real life imitates art. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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